


Charger Practice

by hopealop3



Category: Splatoon
Genre: Gen, kids pronouns are min/mins i hope its easy to follow/adjust to, one of these characters uses neopronouns, so named after gear and such, their names follow splatoon manga/coroika rules
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-17
Updated: 2020-12-17
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:00:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28122015
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hopealop3/pseuds/hopealop3
Summary: Kid and Retro are considered the two charger mains of Team Juice. Well.. Retro is the charger main on Team Juice, and Kid is just trying to follow in his footsteps.
Relationships: original non-binary character & original non-binary character
Kudos: 2





	Charger Practice

**Author's Note:**

> (Written in July of 2019)
> 
> hello! retro belongs to my friend (ao3 user emosushi.) i hope you enjoy his and kid's antics as much as we do.

The metro screeched to a halt at the Kuroshio line’s entrance. Dozens of humanoid sea creatures rushed to enter the car, all brushing past each other and ducking around the occasional spine, tentacle, incased weapon, or claw to get a chance to find a seat in Inkopolis’ busiest line at rush hour. 

Two inklings, in particular, did their best to make their way into the car, being bumped around and pushed by the various marine life around them like balls in a pachinko machine. The weapon cases and ink tanks they strapped to their backs forced various taller patrons of Inkopolis’ underground metro system to duck away. These inklings we named Kid and Retro, and they had a turf stage to get to.

“Do you see any seats?” Kid asked once they had entered the car, doing mins best to stay beside mins taller friend’s side. Min was a short tanned inkling kid with short yellow tentacles that were tucked behind mins ears but long enough to rest on mins shoulders. Min was holding onto mins friend’s arm to not lose him in the crowded cart of people.

“No. We missed them all,” mins friend answered bluntly after a quick moment of glancing around the car. He was a short navy inkling teen, though taller than his friend, and wore a pair of red shades atop his head. He wore a red jacket and had his hands in his pants pockets, trying to see around the various other passengers on the metro. 

“This way.” Retro took off and squeezed himself past the other patrons, taking Kid with him, to a spot near the door they had entered through, but off to the side so more people could pass through. 

There were people standing here, grabbing onto the poles to steady themselves, and a few lucky customers were seated in the metal seats. Retro grabbed onto the metal pole nearest to them, causing Kid to let go of him and grab on too. They watched as more people filled the car until they were crowded by bigger sea life and the doors to the car finally closed. A loud, barely comprehensible voice came on from the overhead speakers before the metro screeched back to life and the train took off to its destination.

\----------

Clouds had already gathered heavily in the Inkopolis sky when Retro and Kid spawned on the spawn points of Moray Towers, each shaking off excess ink as they gripped their respective chargers in hand, Retro with his kensa splatterscope and Kid with mins mark 1 bamboozler.

It was late summer, vacation season would be over in about a week, and the cool winds from the ocean had already begun making their way inland, bringing the clouds and marine layer with it, making the air cool and crisp. The duo had rented out the turfing stage for two hours since it was one of the days it was off the standard turfing rotation, so they could have their weekly charger practice session. It was a very big stage, especially for only two people, but it was perfect for practicing aim, or so Kid had thought.

To be entirely honest, Retro had mostly forgotten about how high up the abandoned and reused parking structure had been in comparison to everything around it, making freeway overpasses, metro ways, and city streets seem tiny. It made him dizzy thinking about how high up they were, and it certainly didn’t help that the spawn point on this map was the most elevated platform on the entire stage.

Okay, so  _ maybe _ Retro had forgotten to mention to Kid that he was afraid of heights when min chose this stage, but min had a good idea and good intentions and he  _ definitely _ wasn’t going to tell his teammate that looked up to him that he was a charger main who was afraid of heights. So, he figured he’d just have to deal with it.

A small, faint echo was heard throughout the stage as Kid yelled and waved mins empty arm around to get Retro’s attention. He turned his attention from the ground (and his feet) to Kid, who was across the map, colored in pink ink. min pointed down to a lower level of the map and took off, jumping off mins spawn point and running down the ramp, the squeaks of mins sneakers hitting the pavement echoing in the tall concrete jungle gym.

Retro nodded before hopping off his spawn point and making his way down his ramp, to the 3rd level of the map, the one right above the giant area in the middle. 

“We’re tryin’ ta splat each other, right?” Kid asked, loud enough so Retro could hear mins. 

“Yeah, that’s what we decided on,” Retro answered, nodding. He glanced around for a few moments, reminding himself where the drops in the stage were, before turning back to Kid. “Use the stage for cover if I’m shooting at you.”

“‘Kay!” Kid answered, bringing mins charger to mins face. “You ready?”

“Ready.”

“Alright, go!”

\----------

“I’m sorry I tore your jacket, Retro!” Kid said, staring at mins feet.

“I already told you, it’s fine, you don’t have to keep apologizing. Plus, it wasn’t even your fault.” 

“It was! The only reason it got torn was because I made you jump outa the way!”

“Yeah, but that was the point, to doge and fire back. It’s not a big deal.” 

“It is to me,” Kid muttered, adjusting mins lightweight cap a bit angrily. They were both silent for a few moments as they walked the streets back to the metro station, their ink tanks and chargers jingling and rustling on their backs.

It was about two hours later, and the duo was heading back to pelagic station to head home. The streets of Inkopolis were crowded as always, but there seemed to be less people out and about, and if they were they seemed to be moving fast. The clouds that had been gathering up earlier in the day now covered the entire sky, casting the busy city into a darker, gloomier light. Though the city’s brightly colored residents certainly popped out in comparison, it left most of the civilians, especially the ink-based ones, rushing home or to find cover. 

Retro noticed this and figured they should probably hurry it up, but his thoughts were abruptly interrupted.

“What if I buy you a replacement?” Kid exclaimed, suddenly turning around to face Retro, walking backward to stay ahead of him.

“...What?”

“What if I buy you a replacement? For your jacket. Y’know, ‘cause you said it was old ‘n stuff…”

“Oh. ...Oh! Oh, uh, no you don’t have to-” Retro started, but he was quickly interrupted by Kid, who obviously didn’t want to give this up. 

“But I feel bad and I want to. Plus I can even pay for it, I have money-”

“It’s fine-”

“Can I at least take you to get a new one then? I’m not gonna let you wear a torn jacket to our next turf match,  _ especially _ if it’s your namesake.”

“Mmmm…. _ fine _ .” Retro grumbled, sighing before sticking his hands into his pants pockets. Kid smiled a wide, Kid classic smile up at him, before turning back around and letting minself fall beside him. 

“We’re closest to Inkopolis Tower, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay! Then we’re going there! This way!” Kid called happily as min dashed up to the nearest crosswalk, ready to change directions entirely.

“Wait, hold on!” Retro called after mins, running to catch up. 

“Sorry! I’m just excited!”

“I know, I can tell.”

Kid giggled before giving Retro a quick ‘Good!’ as min crossed the street with Retro at mins side. 

\----------

“Oi! Get over here!” Retro called, walking up to Kid as he unzipped his jacket to take it off. It was raining, and it was getting harder by the minute. The clouds above Inkopolis had finally decided to strike, and Retro definitely didn’t want himself or Kid to get hurt.

Kid had gone frozen still, a good way in front of Retro, mins hand raised as min let the rain pelt against mins skin, making it fizz and letting spots of sunny yellow ink appear and get quickly absorbed back into the skin as rain hit mins. 

The streets were mostly silent, the only other presence being from the occasional car or the other pedestrians here and there. Most of the ones out were jellies and urchins who were all smart enough to bring an umbrella or raincoat of some kind, making their way throughout the city, trying to get to business that was important enough that rain might as well be a bee minding its own damn business in the general vicinity in comparison.

Kid turned around to look at Retro, confused and concerned when min noticed he had taken his jacket off. “What’re you doing!?” Kid called, jogging up to Retro.

“Trying to keep us dry,” Retro explained, finally catching up to Kid. He had raised his retro gamer jersey above his head, keeping it up and letting the sides drape over his arm as he held it.

Kid looked back at Retro, silent, trying to understand what he meant by ‘us’. It took mins a second, but min gasped lightly when min got it, and rushed over to Retro’s side, squeezing beside him. He passed mins the other end of the jacket and used his now empty hand to pull Kid closer, to get more of mins under the jacket, before letting his arm go limp behind them.

“The plazas not too far!” Kid pointed out, using mins empty hand to point ahead of them. Min was right, the plaza was another block in front of them, where Inkopolis Tower, Booyah Base, and Inkopolis News Station stood. “We can get outa this rain over there.”

“Let’s book it.”

\----------

Retro and Kid stepped inside of Jelly Fresh, the jacket above their head and their legs dripping wet from the rain. Retro took the other end of the jacket from Kid and opened the door again, shaking it off and wringing it outside on the sidewalk, before coming back inside. There were a few other kids inside, but other than that the store was pretty empty. 

“I’m going to get my jacket,” Retro mumbled, walking off into the store.

“Okay! I’m just gunna look around then!” Kid called, following Retro. Both their shoes squeaked on occasion on the shiny tile floor, leaving wet footprints after them for a couple of steps.

“Wait a moment…” Kid murmured. min stopped walking and turned around, looking towards the door. “They sell umbrellas here!” min exclaimed, running over to the tall bin by the door with umbrellas in it, each with a price tag tied to the handle.

“I knew that,” Retro stated, a little too abruptly to be considered subtle.

“Come’re! We’re gunna choose one!” Kid called, using one of mins hands to gesture at Retro as min wandered up to the bin. Retro shrugged and walked over, silently, to the tall wooden bucket with umbrellas in it.

“Oh, this is perfect!” Kid murmured, taking an umbrella out of the bin. It had a clear canopy and the handle was painted white. “It’s so convenient that they kinda just have these!”

“It’s because it’s raining,” Retro explained, peering over Kid’s shoulder to look at the umbrellas. “You wanted me to choose one?”

“Yeah! To help! If we’re gunna be sharing this I don’t wanna pick something you wouldn’t like!” 

“I don’t care what you choose,” Retro stated. “As long as it’s not broken.”

“Oh, really? Okay! I’ll take this one then!” Kid decided happily, turning around and holding the clear umbrella up higher to show to Retro. 

“I’m getting my jacket now,” Retro said after nodding at Kid. He turned around and walked further into the store.

\----------

“What now?”

Retro and Kid were walking back towards pelagic station, now under the clear umbrella that they were both holding between each other, with Retro’s hand on the bottom and Kid’s hand right above his. It was raining harder than earlier, but it had stopped getting worse, so the duo of squidkids had figured this was as worse as it was going to get. The pitter-patter of sharp raindrops on the umbrella's canopy brought a calming lull to the two, mostly drowning out the sharp pitapats of heavy rain on the cement and asphalt. 

Retro was wearing his newly bought jersey and carrying the torn, soaked one in his other hand since Kid had pestered him to put it on. Kid’s cap and Retro’s shirt were still quite wet from the rainwater, causing the occasional thin stream of ink to drip down Kid’s face if it didn’t go down one of mins tentacles already. 

Kid was shivering a bit. Wearing short shorts while it was raining definitely isn’t the best idea if you’re trying to stay warm, and it’s definitely not the best idea if you want to keep your legs from bleeding ink into your shoes. Most of the water that was jumping back up from the floor was landing on or grazing Kid’s legs, leaving them stinging and fizzing like hydrogen peroxide on a bloody cut wherever the ink was running down. mins socks were a bit stained from mins own ink, but other than that min seemed quite fine, in fact, in Retro’s company, min didn’t seem bothered by the stinging rain at all. min was with mins friend, after all, and he made even the worst of situations better, in mins opinion at least.

“What do you mean?” Retro asked Kid, glancing over at mins. min was staring up at the umbrella’s canopy, watching the water hit the top and drip down the edges.

“Like...what do we do now?” min clarified, turning to Retro instead of the umbrella.

“Uh...go home?” He suggested, squinting at mins in confusion. Well, actually, it was more of a statement. They were going home, or at least, that’s what he assumed.

“Well uh, I was wondering,” Kid started, adjusting mins hair so it was out of mins face more. “If we could go get milkshakes?” min asked, smiling sweetly at him.

“It’s raining and you want milkshakes?” 

“Yeah! It’s practice tradition! We always get milkshakes after practice, I don’t just wanna miss out on milkshakes ‘cause we got all wet!”

“You'll get sick.” Retro pointed out. 

Kid giggled, then smiled at him. “I’m pretty sure I’m gunna get sick anyways, Retro. Plus, I just wanna spend s’more time with you.” 

Retro was silent for a few moments, looking right back at Kid before nodding. “Ok. We’ll get milkshakes.”


End file.
